Well, it's that time of the year again, so I guess it's time to... make my top 10 of 2011.
Now, I've explained this before, and I'll explain it again:
The reason why my top ten list comes so late compared to everybody else,
is because if you make your list the day after the year ends, you're essentially saying.
"Fuck independent movies, fuck foreign language film, and fuck everything that's not mainstream."
It's almost as if you're saying there's a cut-off point,
where any movie that didn't have X amount of dollars in an advertising budget, doesn't deserve to get mentioned.
One of the films on my list for 2011, I was lucky enough to see in theaters,
but if I wasn't living in a city with such a variety of theaters and film festivals,
then I would have been forced to wait for the Region 1 Blu-ray release, which wasn't until February 2013.
And yes, there are gonna be some films on this list that are really debatable as to which year they officially came out,
But regardless, these are my favorite films from what I would consider to be 2011,
and hopefully by the end of this, you'll have a few new movies to check out...
[clip] ...on Pioneer LaserDisc
If the music don't sound good, who cares what the picture looks like?
Then Pioneer gives me their LaserDisc player. It's a video turntable that works with a laser beam,
and that laser beam makes all the difference, they tell me.
[YMS] Starting out this list at number 15, is Submarine.
This quirky and stylized British comedy is both involving and hilarious.
It deals with the central theme of humans being incapable of ever knowing what someone's truly thinking or feeling,
and it's pretty fucking funny, so check it out.
[clip] Listen, uh, I hope you don't mind, uh, but your mother informs me that you have a girlfriend.
- Is there, uh, anything I can help you with, there? - I'm not sure yet, I'll, I'll let you know.
OK. Alright. Yes.
Uh, listen, look, I know you think I'm very boring, you know, but once,
I ripped my vest off, in front of a woman, and, uh, it was very effective, actually.
- I know. - Yeah.
It produced a very, um, atavistic response. It's just something to bear in mind.
And listen, I made you a cassette recording.
Um, it's a compilation of songs I used to listen to, during some of my early formative relationships, you know?
And plus, just a couple of things I thought you might dig.
I think music can, uh, make things seem a bit more real, sometimes, if you know what I mean.
Thanks
I've also included some breakup songs, towards the end, just in case things don't work out,
uh, which obviously, you know, that isn't the aim, though, I gotta tell you, it is likely, um, passion rarely lasts, I'm afraid.
All right? Well, good night, and, um, well done! It's an achievement. It really is, of sorts.
Good night, son.
At number 14 is a Swedish film called Sound of Noise. If you love music, then this movie's for you.
The film centers around five drummers, who all decide to become musical terrorists
wreaking havoc, and playing music on whatever will make a sound.
Now, this movie's logic is a lot more stupid than other movies that I've criticized,
but this is a movie that knows how little sense it makes, and uses it as part of the joke.
Definitely self aware
At number 13, is an Israeli film called Footnote.
The story is about a troubled relationship between a father and son who both work in the same field.
The father is notified that he's won the Israel Prize for his work,
but what he doesn't know, is that that message was supposed to have been given to his son.
Definitely an entertaining movie, and the contrast between the two characters is kinda hilarious.
Check it out.
At number 12 is The Tree of Life by Terrence Malick.
Everything's amazingly shot, and not only is an accurate and honest portrayal of the family unit in the 1950s,
but it's an accurate portrayal of life as a young boy, and losing your innocence.
See it.
[clip] You promise you'll do it? Without having to ask what it is, just have the confidence that what your father asks of you is right?
Yes, sir.
For the next half hour, will you not speak, unless you have something important to say?
What'd you do today, my fine feathered friend?
Sit on the front two inches of your chair. Better for your posture.
I read that in the paper.
Did you actually buy this from Mr. Ledbetter?
Don't explain. Just nod- yes or no.
Be quiet.
What did you say?
Please.
Leave him alone!
[YMS] At number 11 is Senna, a documentary of the world famous Formula One racer of the same name.
What I love about this movie, is that there's so much footage, it's able to play off as a drama unfolding before your eyes,
rather than a documentary of something that happened in the past.
Even the interviews are just audio clips laid over top of what you're already watching,
rather than cutting the shots back and forth, and affecting the pacing.
Freaking see it!
That day, I suddenly realized that I was no longer driving conscious. And I was in a different dimension, for me.
The circuit, for me, was a tunnel, which I was just going, going, going. And I realise I was well beyond my conscious understanding.
Ayrton was multiple seconds into the lead, had the race in hand,
with only a handful of laps to go, and he received a radio message that said, "You are so far in the lead, slow down."
At number 10, is The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by David Fincher.
This is one of the few cases of an American remake of a foreign language film being as good as the original.
Trent Reznor continues to do a great job with the soundtrack, along with Atticus Ross.
Everything's well acted, well shot, well paced.
It's a real crowd pleaser, even though the content may be disturbing for some viewers.
Check this one out, if you haven't already.
At number 9 on my list, is an animated film from France called The Rabbi's Cat.
The plot involves a cat suddenly learning how to speak, supposedly from eating the household parrot,
and then expressing his desires to convert to Judaism.
It's clever, self aware, politically aware, and plenty stylized whenever it gets the opportunity.
It's nice to see an animated movie with such balls, that isn't afraid to tackle subjects like divided societies,
and conflict between Jews and Muslims.
The plot kinda jumps all over the place, so the pacing is another reason this movie is able to make fun of itself.
And I find it hilarious. So check it out.
At number 8 on my list is Drive, by Nicolas Winding... Raf-n
I'm surprised that some American audiences thought this movie wasn't very fast paced,
because to me, this movie isn't dull in the slightest. The pacing is decently fast, especially when comparing to other movies on my list.
Anyway, it's fun to watch, and stylized as fuck.
Both the font choices, and the soundtrack help give an 80s feel to a present-day story,
and when the action happens in this movie, you sure as hell notice it.
Ryan Gosling does a fantastic job playing the quiet, but ultimately intimidating, main character.
And this movie super fun to watch, so check it out!
At number 7, is the Academy Award winner for Best Picture, The Artist.
It's not only fun to watch, but the directing, acting, and musical composition perfectly reflect the silent movie era.
Definitely check it out!
At number 6 is Certified Copy. An Iranian-born director filmed the movie set in Tuscany,
with the main characters speaking a combination of English, French and Italian.
And this director doesn't just have skills as a linguist, the cinematography is fantastic.
Not only is this incredibly well acted, but you definitely get more out of it from repeated watches.
In fact, that's kind of the whole point of the movie. The entire theme of Certified Copy is a discussion on what constitutes as art,
and how it's not really the piece itself that gives it its meaning, but our interpretation of it.
And just by adding more contextual details about it, that we didn't previously know,
it almost changes the entire meaning of what we're viewing.
Fantastic film, and I highly recommended it.
[clip] - I didn't mean... - No, no, it's OK, go on.
[undecipherable] what you knew, then?
I wasn't well in those days.
- Go on with your story. - No, I, I'm sorry, I...
- So? - So.
The mother was telling her son something about the statue.
You know it's, uh, it's only a copy, the original's in the Academia, but..
The mother hadn't told the boy that, I'm sure. Am I right?
Yeah, well, The boy was looking up at the statue as though is was a genuine, original, authentic work of art.
[phone rings]
Sorry, I really have to take this. I, I'll try outside.
Hello, yes?
[YMS] At number 5 on my list is Midnight in Paris, by Woody Allen.
It stars Owen Wilson, who's stuck with a thought that life in the past was better than it is today,
and as luck would have it, suddenly, every night at midnight, he gets transported back to the 1920s,
and has conversations with all of his greatest inspirations. This movie's hilarious and insightful, and I definitely recommend it.
[clip] Here's a superb Picasso.
If I'm not mistaken, he painted this, this marvellous portrait of his French mistress, Madeline Brissou in the twenties.
- Er, Paul, I'm gonna have to differ with you on this one. - Really?
Gil, Gil. Just pay attention, you might learn something.
OK, well, if I'm not mistaken, this was a failed attempt to capture a young French girl named Adriana,
from Bordeaux, if my art history serves me, who came to Paris to study costume design for the theatre.
And I'm pretty sure she had an affair with Modigliani, then Braque, which is how Pablo met her, Picasso.
Course, what you don't get from this portrait is the subtlety in her beauty. She was just a knock-out.
What have you been smoking?
So I'd hardly call this picture marvellous, It's more of a petit bourgeoise statement of how Pablo sees her, saw her.
He's distracted by the fact that she was a absolute volcano in the sack.
[YMS] At number 4 on my list is Weekend.
Now, I've seen a lot of gay movies in the past that had no substance whatsoever,
and completely relied on the audience members to be gay to even enjoy it, and this is not one of those movies.
The director has such a good grasp on film making and human emotion, it's astounding.
This is the most honest film I've ever seen in terms of a depiction of a gay relationship,
and you don't have to be gay yourself to enjoy the movie.
That is, of course, unless you're a socially detached dinosaur from Uganda.
I mean, gay people are able to watch straight relationship movies all the time,
it's not like you need a super power to be able to feel human emotion,
and they did touch on that notion philosophically, through dialogue in the film, as well,
but if your gut response to this movie is "Eww! That's gross!" then you should probably just kill yourself,
cuz there's a lot of worse things on this planet, and I don't know how you're going to cope with that.
Fantastic movie, and I'd definitely recommend it.
[clip] And what happens is, while you're projecting who you want to be,
this gap opens up between who you want to be and who you really are.
And in that gap, it shows you what's stopping you becoming who you want to be.
And all of this from taking about sex?
And all of that from talking about sex.
It's interesting, I like it. I'm not sure that I... totally understand what you're saying.
- Fuck, it all just sounds better in my head, I don't think I've explained... - No, no, no, no, no.
I'm interested, I'm r.. I'm really interested. So what are you gonna do? Are you... are you just gonna play the recordings out loud...
I dunno. I dunno. The problem is that no-one's gonna, no-one's gonna come and see it, because it's about gay sex.
So, the gays'll only come, cuz they want a glimpse of a cock, and they'll be disappointed.
The straights won't come because, well, it's got nothing to do with their world.
They'll go and see pictures of refugees or murder or rape. But gay sex? Fuck off.
[YMS] At number three is The Skin I Live In by Pedro Almodóvar.
Anybody that's seen his other movies will probably know that's fucked up and will challenge is an audience member.
It's well shot, and the soundtrack is great, and I don't really want to spoil it too much, so I'm just gonna let this movie speak for itself.
At number 2 on my list is Shame by Steve McQueen.
This is his second feature film so far, and holy shit, does this guy have a good track record.
It's an amazing character study of a man played by Michael Fassbender,
who is addicted to lust, but won't let himself experience a meaningful relationship.
Drama unfolds between him and his sister, played by Carey Mulligan,
and everything is so impressively shot, and well-acted, and well-written, and I love the soundtrack too.
except it sounds way too similar to the soundtrack for The Thin Red Line,
and it might have taken number 1 spot, if that hadn't been the case, because all together, this is a masterful film.
Definitely check it out.
[clip] Why is it always so dramatic with you, everything is always the end of the world.
It's not fucking dramatic, I'm trying to talk to you.
I don't wanna talk.
Try not talking. Try just listening, or thinking, for a change.
- Yeah, cuz that's working great for you, you're completely fine. - I've got my own fucking apartment.
Oh, whoopy fucking shit! You have your own apartment, that's amazing! You have a job and an apartment, I should be in awe of you.
Well, at least I'm responsible for it. At least I don't depend on people all the time. You're a dependency. You're a parasite.
You don't have anybody. You don't have anybody, you have me and your fucking pervert boss.
You slept with that fucking pervert boss. What does that make you?
Don't talk to me about sex life, Brandon, not from you.
Whatever.
I'm going out.
Right. And then you'll come back, and we'll just have the same fucking conversation again.
- No, you'll move out. - And then I'll never hear from you again?
[YMS] And my favorite movie from 2011 is...
The Kid With a Bike, directed by Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne.
This movie follows a young boy in foster care, unable to cope, and in denial about the fact that his father wants nothing to do with him.
A local hairdresser decides to take care of him on weekends, as a random act of kindness,
and this sheer honesty of the portrayal of this young and damaged child is truly heart-wrenching.
It's depressing as fuck, but rarely are you able to see a child's performance that's this good,
And wouldn't you know it? This was the one that I was talking about earlier,
so any average person that made their list a year ago would have probably missed out on it.
Definitely deserving of the number 1 spot on this list.
Well, there you have it, my favorite movies from 2011.
Now that I'm done being a pretentious douche, you should probably check out some of these movies.
Let me know what you think in the comment section.
Start your tor..tillas. Make, make yourself a snack.
Subtitles by JorWat